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Five “Healthy” Kids Meals as Unhealthy as Twinkies, Big Macs, Bacon

Fast-food chains including McDonald’s and Burger King announced plans last July to make kids meals healthier. But PCRM’s new Five Worst “Healthy” Fast-Food Kids Meals report found meals still alarmingly high in fat, cholesterol, sodium, and sugar.

The five worst “healthy” fast-food kids meals are:

Five Worst “Healthy” Fast-Food Kids Meals

Meal

Nutrition Shocker

Chick-fil-A Kids Grilled Nuggets Kids Meal

Contains the same amount of cholesterol as a Big Mac.

McDonald’s Cheeseburger Happy Meal

Contains more sodium than 13 orders of McDonald’s kids fries.

Sonic Kids’ Jr. Burger Meal

Contains more sugar than two Twinkies.

Burger King Hamburger Kids Meal

Contains almost as much cholesterol as six slices of pork bacon.

Denny's Build Your Own Jr. Grand Slam

Contains almost 100 more milligrams of sodium than the government recommends children consume at breakfast.

“So far, the fast-food industry, subsidized by large federal agricultural subsidies for meat and dairy, has little incentive to offer healthier meals,” PCRM president Neal Barnard, M.D., wrote in his blog. “To force a real change, it is the true stakeholders in this debate: parents, pediatricians—and politicians, who need to keep up the pressure against the fast-food industry with their deep pockets and their “happy” meals that are threatening the very future of our children.”

This month marks the one-year anniversary of the Kids LiveWell campaign, a high-profile initiative launched by the National Restaurant Association, where restaurant chains including Burger King and Chick-fil-A pledged to offer and promote healthier kids meals. McDonald’s does not participate in Kids LiveWell, but last July the fast-food giant also announced plans to make its Happy Meals more nutritious.